Floor-loading cabinet construction



March 7 1964 A. R. COSTANTINI ETAL 8 FLOOR-LOADING CABINET CONSTRUCTION Filed April 5. 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 @mmmY-F 24 g 4 INVENTORG 3 ANTHONY R. Cosmunm BY ATTOR March 17, 1964 A. R. COSTANTINI ETAL 3,

FLOOR-LOADING CABINET CONSTRUCTION Filed April 5, 1961 s Sheets-Sheet 2 A, Hum 01 Pmge 'Bv' HTTORMEV A. R. COSTANTlNl ETAL 3,125,388

FLOOR-LOADING CABINET CONSTRUCTION March 17, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed April 5, 1961 mvmroxs ANTHONY R-COSTANTINI ANT ONY DI ANGELUS ATTORNEY United States Patent FLOOR-LOADING CABINET CONSTRUCTION Anthony R. Costantini, Philadelphia, and Anthony di Augelus, Manna, Pa., assignors to Victory Metal Manufactnring Company, doing business as Victory Metal Manufacturing Corporation, Plymouth Meeting, Pa, a

corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Apr. 5, 1961, Ser. 100,845 6 Claims. (Cl. 3129214) This invention relates generally to cabinet constructions, and more particularly pertains to the floor construction of cabinets into and out of which it is desired to roll rack structures, as for example a tray-carrying rack wherein the trays are loaded with foods or other products to be either warmed or refrigerated, or for that matter stored at ambient temperatures.

Rolling rack type cabinets, of course, pose several problems. One problem inherently associated with cabinets of this type is that the rolling rack must be readily movable into and out of the cabinet by the personnel normally working with these racks, and must not require that the rack be physically lifted or lowered into the cabinet. Additionally, since racks of this type are rolled about through corridors and into and out of the rooms, a certain amount of dirt and dust will adhere to the wheels of the racks and will be carried into the cabinet when the rack is moved inside thereof. Consequently, cabinets of this type can present a problem with regard to sanitation conditions if not properly constructed so as to render the floor areas thereof easily and thoroughly cleanable. Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to provide novel floor loading cabinet constructions which may be quickly and easily cleaned in a thorough manner to maintain the interiors thereof in a sanitary condition.

Another object of this invention is to provide novel floor loading cabinet constructions which achieve the desired result of easy and thorough cleaning by employing a one piece floor liner which covers the entire bottom of the cabinet without requiring the use of dirt catching joints or seams.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a novel floor loading cabinet construction employing a one piece bottom liner as aforesaid and wherein the floor liner is upwardly curved at its terminating edges so that its joints with the cabinet interior wall liners are at an elevation above the floor level, and wherein further all of the cabinet floor liner corners are smoothly rounded for quick access and easy cleaning.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a floor loading cabinet construction wherein the floor liner of the cabinet is extended outward beyond the cabinet door opening and terminates in a ramp substantially flush with the floor surface upon which the cabinet is seated.

The foregoing and other objects of this invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification in conjunction with an examination of the appended drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front perspective view of a two door refrigerator type cabinet made according to the principles of the invention, the front ramp being clearly visible therein;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through the cabinet of FIGURE 1 as would be seen when viewed along the lines 22 thereof and also showing a portion of a roll-in rack about to move onto the cabinet floor ramp;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmented perspective view of the lower left-hand section of the cabinet of FIGURE 1 with the door removed and parts broken away to reveal details of construction;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged horizontal sectional View ice through the cabinet of FIGURE 1 as would be seen when viewed along the lines 4-4 thereof;

FIGURE 5 is a partial vertical sectional view such as would be seen when viewed along the lines 55 of FIG- URE 4, the parts being enlarged and fragmented for purposes of clarity;

FIGURE 6 is a front perspective view of a pass-through type of cabinet similar to the structure of FIGURE 1 excepting that the cabinet of FIGURE 6 has doors both front and back, so that a rolling rack may be moved directly through the cabinet if need be;

FIGURE 7 is a partial vertical section on enlarged scale through the bottom of the cabinet of FIGURE 6 and appears as would be seen when viewed along the lines 77 of FIGURE 6;

FIGURE 8 is a front perspective view of a cabinet construction in which the cabinet bottom is not recessed downward into the underlying floor but one which sits directly on the upper surface;

FIGURE 9 is a side elevational view of the cabinet of FIGURE 8;

FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of the lower portion of the cabinet of FIGURE 8 and illustrating the flush seating bottom construction of the cabinet in distinction to the floor recessed type of cabinet bottom as shown in FIGURE 6 for example; and

FIGURE 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the cabinet bottom construction of the flush type illustrated in FIGURES 8 through 10, and is shown for the passthrough type of cabinet having doors at both ends which require the illustrated ramp structures shown.

In the several figures, like elements are denoted by like reference characters.

Considering first the cabinet of FIGURES 1 to 5, there will be seen a cabinet 2%) having an outer shell comprised of outer side walls 21, back wall 23, top wall 28, corner mullions 24 and center mullion 31, doors 26, and a bottom section generally designated as 25. The inside of the cabinet includes side wall liners 22, rear wall liner 23a, top liner 29, the center wall panels 32 and the pilasters 30 disposed in vertically extending recesses formed in the center walls. The various walls, liners and panels are secured together by well known means such as screws or welds, and the interwall spaces are filled with a suitable insulation material 27 which acts as an efficient thermal barrier.

As best seen in the showings of FIGURES 2, 3 and 5, the bottom section 25 includes a cabinet floor liner 33 and a bottom plate 34 recessed downward into the floor 35, the bottom plate 34 being secured by means of screws 36 to a pair of generally Z-shaped angle brackets 37 which latter are in turn secured to the under turned edges 38 of the outer side wall 21 by means of additional screws 39. Within each compartment of the cabinet, the floor liner 33 is turned upward for a distance along the planes of the rear wall liner 23a, center wall panels 32 and side wall liners 2.2, as for example at 40, and the upturned edges 40 are then turned laterally outward to form the flanges 41 upon which seat the out-turned lower flanges 42 of the side wall liners 22, and the similarly disposed lower flanges 43 and 44 respectively of the center wall panels 32 and rear wall liner 23a. As best seen in the showings of FIGURES 2, 3 and 4, the cabinet floor liner 33 extends outwardly forward beyond the cabinet door openings to form a downwardly angled ramp portion 45 terminating in a rearwardly under-turned lip 46 forming an open channel adapted to receive the front horizontal edge of a generally Z-shaped angle bracket 47.

As best seen in FIGURE 2, a somewhat similar angle bracket 48 is disposed across the bottom rear of the cabduct 20 in underlying relationship to an iii-turned flange 49 formed at the bottom of the rear wall 23. The bottom plate 34 is conventionally secured to the Z-shaped angle brackets 47 and 48 by means of the screws 59, the upper horizontal arm of the Z-shaped bracket 48 being secured to the rear wall in-turned lower flange 4? by screws 51 and the upper horizontal arm of the Z-shaped front angle bracket 47 being secured within the channel between the floor liner ramp 45 and under-turned lip 46 by application of pressure which clamps the angle bracket 47 upper arm securely in the channel. As also best seen in FIG- URES 2, 3 and 4, the cabinet floor liner 33 is contoured inside the cabinet behind the corner mull-ions Z4 and cen ter mullion 31 at approximately the region where the liner merges with the ramp 45 to provide smooth surfaced spherical corners 52 which are extremely easy to clean. Turned up from the opposite ends of the ramp 45 in the door frames of the cabinet are tabs 53 which form a continuation of the floor liner up-turned edges 49. Similarly, the ramp 45 is turned up on opposite sides of the center mullion 31 to form a pair of tabs 54. Thus, the cabinet floor liner 33 is seen to be a one piece construction having smoothly turned up edges at all points about the periphery thereof so that the joints between the cabinet floor liner 33 and the cabinet liners and wall panels are all disposed above the actual cabinet floor level and no dirt catching joints or sharply angled bends exist. The upper termination of the floor liner mullion tabs 53 and 54 are covered by the lapped over bottom edges of the corner mullion vertical strips 24a and center mullion strips 31a.

Comparison of the pass-through type cabinet construction of FIGURE 7 with the single opening type cabinet of FIGURE 2 shows that the bottom construction is basically similar and differs only in certain details. For example, the cabinet floor liner 33' of FIGURE 7 is seen to be formed at front and back with the ramps 45, whereas the construction of FIGURE 2 discloses only a single ramp 45 associated with the cabinet floor liner 33. Moreover, the floor liner front corners 52 observed in FIGURES 2, 3 and 4 are seen to be repeated at all points in the showing of FIGURE 7 as the spherical corners 52 formed symmetrically at the front and back of the passthrough type cabinet. Similarly, the Z-shaped bracket 48 of FIGURE 2 is modified in the showing of FIGURE 7 so that the similarly Z-shaped angle bracket 48' is provided with a longer upper horizontal arm suitable for clamping between the rear ramp and its associated under-turned lip 46. Finally, the bottom plate 34 as seen in FIGURE 2 is formed in two sections, 34a and 34b, in the showing of FIGURE 7 for purposes of simplifying the assembly of the structure to the cabinet floor liner 33. A reinforcing box structure 55 illustrated in FIGURE 7 provides firm support for the cabinet floor liner 33, and reinforcing structures of this type or similarly effective ones are utilized in the construction of FIGURES 1 to 5 although not specifically seen therein.

In any event, the structures of FIGURES 1 through 7 are seen to be characterized by a cabinet bottom construction wherein the underlying floor 35 upon which the cabinet is seated is recessed downward so that the leading edges of the ramps 45 or 45 are disposed substantially flush with the floor surface to thereby provide for moving of a rolling rack, such as that shown in fragmentary [form as 56 in FIGURES 2 and 7, into and out of the cabinet structure.

Turning now to the showing of FIGURES 8 through 11, the cabinet structures shown therein are observed to be quite similar to the already described constructions of FIGURES 1 through 7. In particular, FIGURES 8 through 10 are quite similar to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, and FIGURE 11 is likewise similar to FIGURE 7. The aspect of cabinet construction shown in FIGURES 8 through 11 which differs from the constructions of the earlier figures is that the cabinet bottom section is not constructed so as to be recessed downward into the floor upon which the cabinet is supported, but is constructed so that the cabinet seats flatwise upon an unbroken plane section of a supporting floor. This feature is clearly seen in the showings of FIGURES 9, 10 and 11 wherein it will be observed that for example in the showing of FIGURE 10, the bottom plate 57 secured between the floor liner ramp portion 45 and rearwardly underturned lip 46 is constructed of perfectly flat sheet material, rather than being formed from the bottom plate 34 and Z-shaped angle brackets 47 and 48 illustrated in the showing of FIGURE 2. Similarly, in the showing of FIGURE 11 the bottom plate 57 is formed from a single continuous fiat piece of sheet material rather than from parts corresponding to those of FIGURE 7 designated as 47, 48', 34a and 34b. Thus, the constructions of FIGURES 8 through 11, insofar as the cabinet and the floor liner are concerned, are substantially identical to the showings of FIGURES 1 through 7 and differ only significantly as regards the structure secured to and underlying the cabinet floor liner. Finally, in all of the constructions a plurality of bumper bands 58 may be secured inside the cabinet to the side wall liners 22 and center wall panels 32 to insure that the rolling rack 56 does not become turned or wedged into the cabinet corners. The vertical elevation of the bumper bands 58 is not critical, and in a typical cabinet may be disposed somewhere between one and three feet above the surface of the floor liner.

Having now described our invention in connection with particularly illustrated embodiments thereof, it will be understood that variations and modifications thereof may now occur to those persons normally skilled in the art without departing from the essential spirit or scope of our invention, and accordingly, it is intended to claim the same broadly as well as specifically as indicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. In a cabinet having inside top, rear and side walls, and a door frame the sides of which are defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet floor, the combination comprising, a one-piece cabinet floor liner having edges adjacent to the cabinet inside rear and side walls turned up smoothly on a radius and smoothly joined to the lower terminal edges of the said rear and side walls completely peripherally about the cabinet interior at an elevation above the cabinet floor level, said floor liner extending outward through the door frame beyond the mull-ions to form a lead-in and exit ramp the terminating edge of which ramp is disposable substantially flush with the surface of the underlying fioor upon which the cabinet is supported, and a cabinet bottom section disposed in downward-spaced underlying relation to the said cabinet floor liner, said bottom section being recessed inward [from and secured to the cabinet outer walls and the ramp portion of the floor liner so that the front-to-back and side-to-side extent of the bottom section are less than the comparable dimensions of the cabinet, whereby the bottom section may be disposed downward into a recess in the floor which supports the cabinet so as to place the edge of the cabinet floor liner ramp substantially flush with the surface of the cabinet supporting floor.

2. In a cabinet having inside top, rear and side walls, and a door frame the sides of which are defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet fioor, the combination comprising, a one-piece cabinet floor liner having edges adjacent to the cabinet inside rear and side walls turned up smoothly on a radius and smoothly joined to the lower terminal edges of the said rear and side walls completely peripherally about the cabinet interior at an elevation above the cabinet floor level, said floor liner extending outward through the door frame beyond the mullions to form a lead-in and exit ramp the terminating edge of which ramp is disposable substantially flush with the surface of the underlying floor upon which the cabinet is supported, and a cabinet bottom plate disposed in underlying relation to the said cabinet floor liner, said bottom plate being secured to the cabinet outer walls and the ramp portion of the floor liner to rigidify the cabinet and provide a broad base seatable substantially fiat upon an underlying cabinet supporting floor.

3. In a cabinet having inside top, rear and side walls, and a door frame the sides of which are defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet floor, the combination comprising, a one-piece cabinet floor liner having edges turned up smoothly on a radius substantially into plane with the cabinet inside rear and side walls, the floor liner turned up edges being thereafter turned laterally outward to form a seating flange disposed above the cabinet floor level and upon which are seated completely peripherally about the cabinet interior the lower terminal edges of the said cabinet rear and side walls, said floor liner extending outward through the door frame beyond the mullions to form a lead-in and exit ramp which terminates in a ramp edge disposable substantially' flush with the surface of the underlying floor upon which the cabinet is supported, and a tab turned up from the floor liner ramp portion opposite H ends where the latter pass the sides of the mullions, said tabs extending in outward continuation of the floor liner smoothly turned up edges which underlie the cabinet inside walls and being each joined to the mullion side adjacent thereto.

4. In a cabinet having inside top and side walls, and aligned front and rear door frames the sides of which are each defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet floor, the combination comprising, a onepiece cabinet floor liner having edges adjacent to the cabinet inside side walls turned up smoothly on a radius and smoothly joined to the lower terminating edges of the cabinet side walls completely from front to rear through the cabinet interior at an elevation above the cabinet floor level, said floor liner extending outward in opposite directions through both door frames beyond the mullions thereof to form front and rear lead-in and exit ramps by means of which mobile racks may be moved bodil-y into and out of the cabinet from either the front or the rear thereof, and a cabinet bottom section disposed in downward spaced underlying relation to the said cabinet floor liner, said bottom section being recessed inward from and secured to the cabinet outer side walls and the front and rear ramp portions of the floor liner so that the front-to-back and side-to-side extent of the bottom section are less than the comparable dimensions of the cabinet, whereby the bottom section may be disposed downward into a recess in the floor which supports the cabinet so as to place the edges of the cabinet floor liner front and rear ramps substantially flush with the surface of the cabinet supporting floor.

5. In a cabinet having inside top and side walls, and aligned front and rear door frames the sides of which are each defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet floor, the combination comprising, a one-piece cabinet floor liner having edges adjacent to the cabinet inside side walls turned up smoothly on a radius and smoothly joined to the lower terminating edges of the cabinet side walls completely from front to rear through the cabinet interior at an elevation above the cabinet floor level, said floor liner extending outward in opposite directions through both door frames beyond the mullions thereof to form front and rear lead-in and exit ramps by means of which mobile racks may be moved bodily into and out of the cabinet from either the front or the rear thereof, and a cabinet bottom plate disposed in underlying relation to the said cabinet floor liner, said bottom plate being secured to the cabinet outer side walls and the front and rear ramp portions of the floor liner to rigidify the cabinet and provide a broad base seatable substantially flat upon an underlying cabinet supporting floor.

6. Ina cabinet having inside top and side walls, and aligned front and rear door frames the sides of which are each defined by a pair of mullions extending upward from the cabinet floor, the combination comprising, a onepiece cabinet floor liner having edges turned up smoothly on a radius substantially into plane with the cabinet inside side wal ls, the floor liner turned up edges being thereafter turned laterally outward to form a seating flange disposed above the cabinet floor level and upon which are seated from front to rear through the cabinet interior the lower terminal edges of the said cabinet side walls, said floor liner extending outward in opposite directions through both door frames beyond the mullions thereof to form front and rear lead-in and exit ramps which each terminate in a ramp edge disposable substantially flush with the surface of the underlying floor upon which the cabinet is supported, and a tab turned up from the opposite ends of each of the floor liner front and rear ramp portions where the latter pass the sides of the mullions, said tabs extending in outward continuation of the floor liner smoothly turned up edges which underlie the cabinet inside walls and being each joined to the mullion side adjacent thereto.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,727,685 Willoughby Sept. 10, 1929 1,740,000 Andrews Dec. 17, 1929 2,133,951 Ashbaugh Oct. 25, 1938 2,313,180 Tathwell Mar. 9, 1943 2,506,448 Gregor May 17, 1950 2,723,176 Richter Nov. 8, 1955 2,902,328 Auer Sept. 1, 1959 

1. IN A CABINET HAVING INSIDE TOP, REAR AND SIDE WALLS, AND A DOOR FRAME THE SIDES OF WHICH ARE DEFINED BY A PAIR OF MULLIONS EXTENDING UPWARD FROM THE CABINET FLOOR, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING, A ONE-PIECE CABINET FLOOR LINER HAVING EDGES ADJACENT TO THE CABINET INSIDE REAR AND SIDE WALLS TURNED UP SMOOTHLY ON A RADIUS AND SMOOTHLY JOINED TO THE LOWER TERMINAL EDGES OF THE SAID REAR AND SIDE WALLS COMPLETELY PERIPHERALLY ABOUT THE CABINET INTERIOR AT AN ELEVATION ABOVE THE CABINET FLOOR LEVEL, SAID FLOOR LINER EXTENDING OUTWARD THROUGH THE DOOR FRAME BEYOND THE MULLIONS TO FORM A LEAD-IN AND EXIT RAMP THE TERMINATING EDGE OF WHICH RAMP IS DISPOSABLE SUBSTANTIALLY FLUSH WITH THE SURFACE OF THE UNDERLYING FLOOR UPON WHICH THE CABINET IS SUPPORTED, AND A CABINET BOTTOM SECTION DISPOSED IN DOWNWARD-SPACED UNDERLYING RELATION TO THE SAID CABINET FLOOR LINER, SAID BOTTOM SECTION BEING RECESSED INWARD FROM AND SECURED TO THE CABINET OUTER WALLS AND THE RAMP PORTION OF THE FLOOR LINER SO THAT THE FRONT-TO-BACK AND SIDE-TO-SIDE EXTENT OF THE BOTTOM SECTION ARE LESS THAN THE COMPARABLE DIMENSIONS OF THE CABINET, WHEREBY THE BOTTOM SECTION MAY BE DISPOSED DOWNWARD INTO A RECESS IN THE FLOOR WHICH SUPPORTS THE CABINET SO AS TO PLACE THE EDGE OF THE CABINET FLOOR LINER RAMP SUBSTANTIALLY FLUSH WITH THE SURFACE OF THE CABINET SUPPORTING FLOOR. 